NIMS, Festo Didactic to Develop Industry 4.0 skills standards

The National Institute for Metalworking Skills (NIMS), in partnership with Festo Didactic, will establish industry-recognized skills standards and credentials for jobs related to Industry 4.0. With the significant trend in digitalization of manufacturing through technology advancements such as Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), training in these skills is needed. With NIMS’ emphasis on manufacturing skills training, credentialing, and standards, plus Festo’s complete Industry 4.0 learning Factories, courseware, and eLearning integration, the two organizations are well poised to provide the training programs for Industry 4.0.

Montez King, executive director of NIMS, says, “This is an exciting development for manufacturers and educators as it directly addresses both the data-driven revolution happening in manufacturing today and the skills gap. There are so many interdependent functions and abilities surrounding Industry 4.0 that this effort will help to bring clarity to the proficiencies required, train people extremely well, and validate their expertise.”

The emergence of Industry 4.0 is new territory for most in manufacturing. As such, among the first tasks to be accomplished is to conduct research to discover and verify exactly what those competencies must be. Then, the training protocols and credentials will be created.

“We are hopeful to have the standards identified and the training program in place by the end of 2019,” King says.

Thomas Lichtenberger, CEO of Festo Didactic says, “As the production line become ‘smarter’ – collecting data to change processes and create efficiencies – workers and students will be expected to adapt in the same way. Bringing NIMS, Festo, and other industry partners together, we look forward to a collaboration that leads to world class industry standards and learning systems programs.”

During the development of the new Industry 4.0 skills standards, NIMS will ascertain the credentials in its existing programs that support the various Industry 4.0 functions and target new credentials for development. The training outcome is to provide employees in or entering a manufacturing workplace with an understanding of Industry 4.0 concepts and impart certifiable skills as companies increasingly adopt automation and data gathering and management functions in their manufacturing operations.

The companies recognized created 500-plus new jobs, expanded business space by more than 130,000ft2 located in multiple regions of the state, and are involved in life sciences, manufacturing, technology, beverage, printing, and health care. Among the 13 were such well-recognized names as Aetna, Gelato, Humana, and Servier Pharmaceuticals. This was the fifth year that Baker welcomed companies at MassEcon’s event, which has been held for past 11 years. MassEcon champions Massachusetts as one of the world’s best places to start, grow, and locate a business.

Festodedicated a Technology Engineering Center (TEC) in Billerica in 2018. This TEC is the company’s first engineering center in the United States devoted to the life sciences. Being located in greater Boston gives personnel proximity to such research institutions as MIT, Harvard, and Brown. The region also hosts many laboratory equipment manufacturers. The team at TEC pioneers the development of new high speed, high accuracy fluid handling products based on pneumatic principles. The center works with individual customers on automated motion and fluid handling solutions that bring laboratory equipment to market faster and with less cost.

“Establishing this center for LifeTech research and development in greater Boston was the right thing to do in terms of talent pool, proximity to customers, and being a great place to live and work,” notes Craig Correia, director, Process Industries, NAFTA. “It was an honor to be recognized by the governor at the annual MassEcon welcome reception.”

“As I listened to the companies that were being welcomed, I could tell many of them are here because of the rich and diverse community … that we have,” Gov. Baker says. “Our success as a Commonwealth has been this ability to retain the … vitality of local communities while we continue to attract these terrific businesses.”

DMP70DMG MORI

DMG Mori Chicago Innovation Days

Set for May 13-16, 2019, sessions will cover new-to-the-US equipment, machining technologies, and digitization.

Integrated Digitalization for planning, preparation, production, monitoring, and service

Heading towards the Digital Factory with Open Connectivity – The trend towards industrial digitization is fundamentally altering the framework conditions for metal cutting production technology. DMG Mori’s machines have been offering digitization solutions since 2013 with the CELOS app-based control and user interface. And, the company has been expanding the range of solutions it offers to create an open ecosystem for the digital factory. DMG Mori is increasing its portfolio of CELOS services with intelligent software solutions and connective hardware.

Highly dynamic production machine

The DMP 70 stands for maximum productivity on the smallest space; with a footprint of just 46.28ft² it is 10% smaller than its predecessor the MILLTAP 700. This compact production machine is for applications in medical technology, job shops, as well as the aerospace sector and other demanding industries. Travel paths of 27" x 16" x 15" and the optional integrated swivel/rotary table enable 5-axis simultaneous machining of a wide range of components making the DMP 70 the ideal addition to any shop floor. Automation solutions such as the workpiece handling WH 3 Cell which can be connected from the right, left, or front of the DMP 70, will be presented at Innovation Days.

Automation Solutions for competitive manufacturing

More value creation through integral automation solutions – Automated machines are crucial components of a digital factory and therefore an integral part of intelligent and networked production. DMG Mori will present automation solutions for machines produced locally in Davis, California.

Additive Manufacturing (AM) with four process chains in the powder bed and with the powder nozzle. Bundled competence at the AM Excellence Center – DMG Mori has five AM Excellence Centers (AMEC) worldwide, including one in Chicago, where engineers design AM solutions involving powder bed and powder nozzle methods.

Additionally, the company will present Technology Excellence in medical, aerospace, die & mold, and automotive; a special focus on the machine tool manufacturer’s 35-year history in 5-axis machining; and two U.S. premieres – the ALX 2000 turning center and the DMP 70 vertical machining center (VMC).

The TrachAlarm will alert a child's caregiver if a tracheostomy tube becomes dislodged.Credit: Innovations Unlimited LLC

The new round of awards is the sixth by the PPDC, following seed grants announced in February 2015, January 2016, January 2017, October 2017, and July 2018.

FloBio LLC of Philadelphia is developing a novel, point-of-care microfluidic chip and reader for rapid platelet function testing. Using minimal amounts of blood, the device will monitor anticoagulation pharmacology used in newborns undergoing corrective heart surgery or on life-sustaining circulatory or pulmonary support. The device will help to control thromboembolic events in infants and children suffering from congenital heart defects.

Innovations Unlimited LLC of Pennsauken, N.J. is creating the TrachAlarm to alert pediatric caregivers in a home care or other non-hospital setting if a patient's tracheostomy tube becomes dislodged. Tracheostomy tubes allow patients to breathe while undergoing treatment for certain chronic and congenital diseases. Fast recognition of tracheal dislodgement reduces risk for complications such as hypoxia, respiratory failure, cardiac arrest, and death.

The University of Pittsburgh is developing the ThreadRiteIV Catheter to improve the placement of peripheral intravenous catheters. These catheters are widely used for drug delivery in healthcare, but often require multiple attempts for insertion. ThreadRite detects blood vessels through a sophisticated system that measures differences in electrical resistance, and instantaneously alerts the operator of vessel entry via a light, audible, and vibratory signal. This eliminates the dependence on blood return for confirmation of insertion.

William J Weiss, PhD, of Penn State College of Medicine is leading efforts to develop the ThoraciCair to reduce the need for invasive and other labor-intensive techniques to treat respiratory distress syndrome in children. The ThoraciCair technology consists of a wearable device to move the chest wall and ventilate the patient by externally applying negative pressure. The ThoraciCair method creates a unique and novel platform for noninvasive ventilation strategies.

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is seeking information about technical standards and related tools for artificial intelligence (AI). The Request for Information (RFI) is in response to the Feb. 11, 2019, Executive Order on Maintaining American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence, directing NIST to create a plan for federal engagement in the development of these standards and tools in support of reliable, robust, and trustworthy systems that use AI technologies.

“Sound technical standards, performance metrics, and tools are needed to foster public trust and confidence in AI technologies,” says Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and NIST Director Walter G. Copan.

In developing the plan, NIST will engage with other federal agencies, the private sector, academic institutions, nongovernmental organizations, and other stakeholders with an interest and expertise in AI and related standards.

Responses to the RFI will help develop a common understanding of the current state, plans, challenges, and opportunities regarding the development and availability of AI technical standards and related tools, as well as federal agencies’ standards-related priorities.

“As AI continues to change the way we live and work, robust standards will help ensure understanding and validation of these rapidly evolving technologies,” Copan says.

Comments are due by 5 p.m. EDT on May 31, 2019, and may be submitted via email to ai_standards@nist.gov, or by mail to the National Institute of Standards and Technology, 100 Bureau Drive, Stop 2000, Gaithersburg, MD 20899. Comments will be made publicly available without redaction.

To further promote discussions in support of a federal plan for engagement in AI technical standards development, NIST will host a workshop on May 30, 2019, at its Gaithersburg, Maryland, campus.

Advancing pediatric surgical options in orthopedics, spine

Five winners in The National Capital Consortium for Pediatric Device Innovation’s (NCC-PDI) Make Your Medical Device Pitch for Kids! competition will each receive $50,000 in grant funding and access to the consortium’s Pediatric Device Innovator Accelerator Program led by MedTech Innovator.

Winners were selected based on the clinical significance and commercial feasibility of their medical devices for children. The competition focused solely on advancing care in pediatric orthopedics and spine, identified by the U.S. FDA as an emerging, underserved specialty lacking innovation.

The winners

A device designed to reduce invasive and repetitive surgery in children and teens with orthopedic illnesses such as scoliosis and limb abnormalities

Surgical Dynamic Spinal Tethering System, a mechanism used to correct the scoliotic spine in pediatric patients through a tethering procedure

Through the inaugural NCC-PDI “Pediatric Device Innovator Accelerator Program,” MedTech Innovator is providing winners with virtual in-depth, customized mentorship from some of the industry’s leading executives and investors.